COURSE DESCRIPTION

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer (LGBTQ) clients are at markedly higher risk for addiction, suicide, and mental health challenges than the general public. Evidence has shown that affirming service providers and identity-targeted interventions can effectively support wellness within these communities. This webinar will describe these mental health disparities, explore what makes LGBTQ populations particularly vulnerable, and consider Sexual and Gender Minority (SGM)-targeted prevention frameworks and strategies. In the second hour, we will highlight some pressures that lead sexual and gender minority people to suicide, what factors elevate or lower self-harm risk, and interventions to help LGBTQ people build resilience in a hostile world.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

• Explore the impact of social determinants of health, including prejudice and discrimination, family rejection, trauma, and stress-related illness, on the substance misuse and suicidal behaviors of Sexual and Gender Minority (SGM) populations.
• Examine the suicide epidemic among LGBTQ people, including prevalence, disparities, trends, psychosocial challenges, and help-seeking behaviors.
• Consider community-targeted intervention strategies to support LGBT individuals struggling with substance use disorders and highlight three effective programmatic frameworks: trauma-sensitive, sex-positive, populations.

PRESENTER

Kate Bishop, MSSA

Kate, an Education Coordinator at the LGBT Health Resource Center of Chase Brexton, is a seasoned professional development trainer with expertise in working with LGBTQ populations, sexual and reproductive health care, adolescent development, intimate partner violence, and sexual trauma. She is certified as a trainer through GLSEN (Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network) and SAGE (Services and Advocacy for LGBT Elders). Before joining the Chase Brexton team, she developed the capacity-building program at the University of Maryland School of Medicine’s STAR TRACK Adolescent HIV program, providing cultural responsiveness training for agencies that serve sexual minority youth of color. Ms. Bishop holds a Bachelor of Arts in Gender Studies from Hiram College and a Masters in Social Work from Case Western Reserve University.

^{This webinar is a collaboration between the Central East ATTC and the Central East PTTC.}